"I'm sorry, but I find it astounding that so many conservatives expect the State of Israel to be a western-style secular democracy whose policies have no more metaphysical ramifications than any other country.
The reason for PM Sharon's being stricken are known to G-d alone, but Rev. Robertson is being more of a true religious Zionist than his detractors."
Right you are. It always amazes me what comes out of the woodworks on a thread when Pat Roberton says what many others think. Take, for instance, assassinating the Venezuelan president, Chavez, taking him out before he does serious harm to the whole of Latin America. I'll bet you a lot of the people on FR think the same, including me. And, coincidental but true, something bad has happened to Israeli prime ministers who give territory away to others. And, biblically, there are warnings about what will happen if you go up against the land of Israel and try to do it in. As someone earlier said, it's either in the bible or it isn't.
Pat Robertson is getting old, and probably not as careful in his remarks as he should be, but, because of his age, he is at a point where he can pretty well say what he wants to. That happens a lot when you get older, you don't care anymore what others think about what you say. But the MSM does. They love to take any little tidbit Pat says on his show and blow it up to gigantic proportions and then make fun of him and his remarks so that they can further denigrate Christianity and its proponents. To make Christians look like fools.
The secular press is the problem here, not what Pat Robertson, whose been off the mainstream stage for quite a while now, says. To further advance their secular viewpoints they go after him. Don't shoot the messenger, shoot the MSM, the real villain. Pat has his own Christian show that frequently discusses world issues from his religion's point of view, and they are talking to their own people, their co-religionists. Pat isn't talking to the nation as a whole, he's talking to his own audience about their own religious beliefs. The MSM lies in wait to broadcast anything even mildly controversial they think he says, and then hack away some more on their favorite past time, knocking religion.
Bottom line, leave Pat alone. He's become, along with Jerry Falwell, two men who have done a ton of good works in their lifetimes, the butt boy of the press. If you can't figure that out, there aren't as many astute Freepers as I thought there were. Realize the real enemy, and Pat isn't it.
Well so much for the 'love thy enemy' aspect of the Bible eh? And throw out Adams 1821 edict of going abroad searching for monsters to destroy as well. Just kill who we want to forward the American agenda of 'spreading democracy'. That it?
I don't agree with the road map, that's also supported by this administration I might add, because I believe the land belongs to the Jews. But to say that God struck down an overweight, out of shape elderly man with a stroke because he wasn't following God's will for Israel is not only a bit out of sorts, it's tasteless. And frankly I can't see that it's supported by Scripture. If it were I imagine other Israeli leaders would have been struck down for their actions as well.
Tell me, what happens when a world leader brings peace and protection to Israel? Will you fully support that leader? If we're to believe Biblical prophecy (which I am in no doubt of) there's a name for that leader. And he won't be a friend to them in the long run either..
Bravo and G-d bless you!
It disgusts me how so many FReepers enjoy jumping on the liberal bandwagon and bashing Pat. You are 100% right in that his words are spoken on an openly sectarian religious show to a specific audience, yet the MSM (and many FReepers) jump down his throat. But then again, FR has its share of avowed atheists and "Theistic evolutionists" as well. Why are these people "conservative" at all? I guess because of their pocketbooks.
Thank you for the backup, flaglady47, and let's hope that Pat doesn't loose his courage because of attacks by the liberals and back-stabbing by closet secular or anti-Israel (or just respectability-craving) FReepers!
And as for Oslo Abe (Foxman) and Baghdad Barry (Lynn), they can go to blazes!